


It Started With Him

by whalepurfume



Series: Bonzai Inazuma! 2020 [1]
Category: Inazuma Eleven, Inazuma Eleven: Ares no Tenbin, Inazuma Eleven: Orion no Kokuin
Genre: #BonzaiInazuma, Day 1: Coaches/ Managers, Gen, HOPEFULLY IT GETS RELEASED ASDJBAJBA, im so excited for when the game's released, when level-5 introduced unmei i fell in love instantly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-16
Updated: 2020-08-16
Packaged: 2021-03-06 03:53:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25926949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whalepurfume/pseuds/whalepurfume
Summary: Bonzai Inazuma! Day 1: Coaches/ManagersUnmei Sasanami just had to find the gasoline for the dying spark.
Relationships: Endou Mamoru/ Unmei Sasanami
Series: Bonzai Inazuma! 2020 [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1881610
Kudos: 2





	It Started With Him

Once the feeling was there, it felt like forever. Once it was gone, it would be like it was never there in the first place. You could say that about feelings for someone, but it hits different when it's love for something---- passion, even. Unmei Sasanami doesn't remember the feel of it anymore, but he remembers the memory of why it left. And, those feelings from that memory is what he wants to forget the most. Unmei could never bring himself to kick a soccer ball anymore.

Unmei furiously presses on the buttons of his game console, biting the inside of his cheeks as he's on edge for a pinch. The words " **GAME OVER** " flashed in front of him in bright red colors. He sighs in frustration, dropping his arms to the sides as he forced to start over from his last checkpoint. 

It was a Thursday afternoon and all the athlete clubs at Raimon Jr. High were sweating on their grounds. Unmei decided to spend the rest of the day taking a little walk around the campus to stretch his legs, hopping from one club to another as he observes their practices. So, he's changed into his white and black tracksuit and zipped it all the way up, just like how he liked it, just as to not feel sticky from the sweat while walking under the sun.

Unmei was interested in the sumo club, but he immediately excused himself in an instant when he swore he saw that someone didn't appropriately wear their mawashi. He was able to play for a bit at the tennis court, but his luck wasn't as great today as his opponent accidentally aimed for his crotch as they did a smash.

In the middle of trying to beat the final boss again, he shivered and gritted his teeth, remembering how it felt when he got a ball to the shin.

"Max! Pass it to Someoka!" Unmei followed the sound of the voice, turning his gaze away from the console to see the soccer club kicking the ball around, the sound of losing erupting again from the device. The world around him becomes monochromatic. Instead of the players running around on the field, he sees his old elementary team and himself passing the ball around. He couldn't make out the people around his younger self as they looked like scribbles substituted their heads. The middle schooler sees his elementary self making the shoot, his friends running towards him, and cheering for him. Unmei blinks and shakes his head, throwing away the memory.

A boy wearing what looked like a pink and blue looking snow hat with cat ears, who Unmei guessed was Max, kicked the ball towards his teammate who had pink hair, assuming it was Someoka. "Ike!" Unmei recognized the voice that drew his attention. He searched the grounds, looking for the owner of the sound to find a boy wearing goggles, his red cape flying behind as he ran.

Someoka kept the ball in place with his arms crossed as Unmei noticed a blonde player zoom past the forward. He threw his right leg all the way back and kicked the ball in the air, a blue dragon emerging from the ground, roaring as it flew with it. " ** _Dragon!_** " He yelled. The blonde leaped into the air as he spun from left to right. His legs were surrounded by a fire vortex, flaming in the sky. Unmei registered that it was a pass. " ** _Tornado!_** " The fire gathers in the blonde's dominant left foot and kicks it towards the goal, the red flames burning around the roaring dragon.

Unmei found himself keeping his eyes on the ball, gawking in awe at the immense power it drove. He quickly transferred his gaze to the person standing in front of the net. He found the goalkeeper with a fierce look of determination, a big grin resting on his face. He brings a tightly clenched fist close to him as energy gathered in his right hand. He opened his palm above him, a huge hand that seemed to electrify like lighting as it emerged from his hand. The goalkeeper thrust it forward to catch the ball. " ** _God Hand!_** " He exclaimed. Unmei watches in suspense as the goalkeeper struggled to hold back the ball. The shot broke through, throwing the goalkeeper with it into the net. A sad smile fell on Unmei's face, tucking his console under his armpit, clapping for a job well done even though he knew the team's protector couldn't see him. _Aw, he let them score a goal._ Unmei expected to catch sight of the protector slam a fist into the ground in disappointment and anger, but he was surprised to see him stand up, exclaiming and gleaming brightly. "Gouenji! Someoka! That shoot was awesome! If we keep on practicing, we'll definitely be number one in Japan!" He beamed, throwing the ball across the field for his friends to chase after it. "I love soccer so much! I love playing it with my friends!" Unmei overheard the goalkeeper say to himself as he prepared his stance and clapped his hands together. "Come on!" He taunted.

Unmei's clapping slowly came to a halt. He focused on the goalkeeper and how he determinedly blocked and stopped every single shot that came at him. The goalkeeper was frolicking around, and running to the ends of the goalpost, rolling around on the dirt. Unmei wanted to meet the guy. He always had an admiration for those who had the guts to say that they loved soccer out loud. His adoration for him kept on growing and growing as he watched the goalkeeper's smile, never leaving his face, despite how much he pushed himself and struggled to block all the shots.

Turning his portable console off and keeping it in his track pants, he went down to his way to the stairs to the field. The downright junior searched for a bench to sit on while he waited for the right time to talk to the guy. He noticed a couple of girls, with bottles of water and stacks of face towels behind them on the seats, cheering for their players. 

He assumed that they were the managers and made his way to approach them. Unmei slowed down his tracks when he noticed the ball bounce off the field, rolling towards his direction. "I'll get that!" He looked up to see the goalkeeper running towards him and the ball. Unmei stepped back a bit from the ball for him to pick it up for the athlete. The goalkeeper gaze's followed the ball and the hands that picked it up. He saw a boy with spruce hair and cyan ends hand it over with stretched arms, a greeting smile on his face. "Hey, my name's Unmei Sasanami." He introduced himself as his school mate accepted the ball. Unmei scanned the boy's uniform. "Well, nice to meet you, Unmei Sasanami-san. I'm Endou Mamoru." Unmei perked up, noticing that he had the yellow captain band on his left. "Oh, you're the captain!" He gasped. Endou instinctively grabbed his left bicep. "Yeah! You can probably already tell, but I'm also the goalkeeper. Do you like soccer?" He asked.

Unmei froze up. _Do you like soccer?_ It repeated in his thoughts. _How was it so easy for him to ask that?_ Unmei stammered, rubbing the back of his head. "Y-yeah! I guess," Endou turned his heel, making his way back to the field. "That's awesome! You should play with us sometime! I'll talk to you later real quick. We're preparing ourselves for the Football Frontier, and we want to use all the free time we can." Unmei raised a brow and tilted his head. "The Football Frontier?" He asked. 

Endou turned his body back towards Unmei. "You don't know about the Football Frontier?" Unmei sheepishly shook his head a little. "It's the tournament that determines the number one youth team in soccer! It's been my dream ever since I kicked the ball. We want to aim for the top!" The goalkeeper pointed to the sky, still clutching the soccer ball tight against his chest. He was radiately bright like the sun. Unmei felt all the colors melt into his view. Endou waved him goodbye and made his way towards the field. He kicked the ball on the sidelines and bolted back to his goalpost.

If the team captain felt this way about the sport, Unmei could only imagine what the other club members felt that way, too. He didn't want to visualize it anymore. Unmei needed to see it--- to feel it, even. Unmei dragged his yellow sneakers to the bench, standing before the nearest girl, and tapped her shoulders. She had short and dark green hair and was wearing an orange tracksuit. "Excuse me?" He pardoned a little smile on his face. The manager paused from cheering for her friends as she glanced to her left to see a boy with spruce hair and cyan ends. 

"Oh, hello! How may I help you?" She asked. With his hands behind his back, Unmei hopped on his toes. "Is there any chance that I could talk to him?" He pointed to Endou, who was instructing the first line of defense in front of him. The manager turned to where he was throwing his finger out. The hands that she used to cup her hands like a megaphone clasped in realization when she understood who Unmei was talking about.

"Ah, Endou-kun? If you're willing to wait until lunch break is over! Once he starts playing, he won't stop. Like, ever." She giggled. Unmei nodded, a look of understanding on his face. "You don't mind if I sit with you guys, right?" Unmei asked, motioning that he was about to take a seat. "Oh, no! We don't!" Unmei took his spot and glanced up to see both of the managers waving at him. "I'm Kino Aki, by the way!" She put out a hand for her to shake, to which he happily accepted. "I'm Unmei Sasanami!" The manager that stood next to Aki turned towards him. "Oh, I'm Otonashi Haruna! I'm in charge of the data and scheduling of the matches." She introduced, waving hello at him since he was too far for a handshake.

Unmei told himself that he would only sit down and watch them play, but somehow, he couldn't help but be on his feet. There was something about the team that psyched him up. He felt it in the way they kicked the ball, in the way they called each other. Unmei felt his pupils dilate in awe. No matter how much he's loved to run on the field, he just can't bring himself to kick the ball. Despite that, he enjoys seeing others do so.

Haruna looked at the watch on her wrist. She cupped her hands like a megaphone and stood by the sidelines. "Guys! It's ten minutes before the bell rings. Let's wrap everything up!" She announced, clapping as loud as she can. Everyone jogged their way towards the benches as Aki prepared the water bottles and face towels to distribute. Unmei didn't want to be a nuisance nor a bother, so he offered help. Aki thanked him, to which Unmei only smiled and nodded in response. With stacks of towels in his hand and a water bottle tucked under an armpit, he searched the crowd for Endou. Luckily, the goalkeeper was jogging his way towards him, bringing the roughed up ball. "Let me get that for you!" The captain said, grabbing the water battle from Unmei. He took a huge gulp of his drink and grabbed a face towel, wiping his sweat.

"Do you want to join our soccer club?" Unmei blinked. _Wow, he was so direct._ Unmei stammered. "I can't say so," Surprised and confused, Endou raised a brow. "What?" He exclaimed, dragging the vowel. The reaction earned the attention of the other members of the club, which placed Unmei on the spot.  
"You love soccer, but you don't want to join the soccer club?" The captain clarified. Unmei scratched his nose with his sleeve. "Well, I can't exactly play soccer," He responded, which was a half-lie. A couple of members from the team grabbed towels from his stack until he had one left.

"Really?" They looked to the left to see the pink-haired player snort. Unmei remembered that it was the one who kicked the ball in the air with a dragon flying with it. "Who loves soccer and doesn't know how to play it?" The comment made Unmei clench the only face towel in his hand as he sheepishly laughed, finding himself trying to shrink away from the crowd, burying his head in his shrugging shoulders.

Endou waved Someoka off. "Don't worry, Unmei! We could teach you! Here," Endou dropped the soccer ball he was holding in front of Unmei's feet. Unmei's breath hitched in his throat and instinctively took a step back. He looked up to see everyone around him observe him with mixed emotions: shock, confusion, and concern. How is a soccer-loving person afraid of the ball? "I'm sorry," He softly apologized, hugging himself, diverting his gaze somewhere else.

The bell rang, signaling the end of the lunch period. "Alright, everyone! Back to the club room and get changed!" Haruna clapped her hand, Unmei silently thanking that she pulled the attention away from him. Most of the soccer club politely waved goodbye to Unmei. He noticed the blonde member nudge Someoka on the sides, giving him a shrug as he was saying, 'why would you say that?'. Someoka shrugs back, not really understanding why the flame-striker would respond in a negative way.

Endou picked the ball from the ground and put his hand on Unmei's shoulder. "I'm sorry if I had made you upset in any way. Don't worry, though! I hope to see you around!" Endou waved goodbye and followed behind his teammates. Unmei's gaze glued on the #1 jersey he was wearing. Haruna appeared beside him, carrying the duffel bag filled with used water bottles on her shoulder. "Mind if I take that from you?" She asked, pointing to what Unmei had in his hand. He realized he still had a tight grip on the face towel. Unmei quickly apologized and handed it to Haruna, who smiled and thanked him. Both of the managers waved him off as they made their way towards the clubroom. Aki turned her heel. "Unmei-kun!" The aforementioned perked up at the call of his name. "If you ever change your mind, our clubroom is by the tennis court!" _Oh, that shabby hut? That was the soccer club?_ Unmei smiled with his eyes and nodded, waving goodbye.

He fiddled with the console inside his pocket, hoping he could've joined a club---- any club---, it didn't matter if it was a sports club or not, he didn't want to waste his free time lounging around. Unmei bit the inside of his cheek. He tried shooting some hoops or running around as he clutched the oval leather ball against his chest, but they didn't seem to pique his interest or excite him. For some reason, he always finds himself pulled towards the soccer club. Even though, no matter how hard he tried, he could never bring himself to kick the ball.

Unmei watched as the students kept all their things and made their way towards the school building. Some were bringing instruments, some were bringing books, and some were bringing sketchpads and pencil cases. Unmei's eyes drooped. He began to reconsider. They woke up every day looking forward to doing what they love. They enhance and master their skills and talents. It's what made them happy. The heartstrings tugged at his chest. Unmei couldn't leave such a passion behind. It didn't disappear, that's for sure. Unmei would describe it as a dying flame, and today, he found the gasoline that burst it into a wildfire. His stomach began to bubble. He wanted to feel what he saw earlier again, and he wanted it every day. 

Unmei decided then and there about what he was going to do. He turned his heel and ran towards the tennis court, pushing his way through the crowd as he searched for the club room Aki mentioned. He saw a couple of familiar faces exit the small building, already changed into their school uniforms. Unmei decided he didn't want to run away anymore. Their love and the power they exert when kicking the ball around made him feel so alive. He squirms his way through the students who were making their way out, muttering quick excuses and apologies if he accidentally bumps into any of the rushing students. If he couldn't feel the wind as he ran with the ball, then he wanted to taste the wind they ran with as they kicked the ball.

Unmei came to a halt when he came front with the defender who pulled out the wall hissatsu. He excused himself, moving past him and entered the almost empty club room. There were a couple of benches and cabinets with a huge container filled with countless of soccer balls in the corner of the area. He glanced to his left to see a huge poster of the tournament Endou talked about but the door.

There, Unmei saw Endou talking to the blonde striker, who he now knows as Gouenji, and the player who wore goggles, his cape nowhere to be found as he had changed into his school uniform. To his right were the soccer managers who were putting their skirts on over their track pants. They all paused, seeing the new figure enter the room. "Unmei!" Endou beamed, diverting his attention away from his friends. "Endou!" Unmei responded. He was panting from all the running. Endou raised a brow in concern, making his way towards Unmei, hoping he wasn't on the verge of fainting. Unmei quickly waved him off. "I'm alright! A-and, I've decided--"

Endou gasped, clenching his fists in excitement and his shoulders shaking, the worried look melting away as stars glistened in his eyes as he made his way towards Unmei. "...to join the soccer club." Aki squealed in excitement, and Endou grabbed his hand, and furiously shook it. "You're in! You don't even need to fill an application! What position do you play in---?" Unmei quickly waved him off, excusing himself. "I want to join as a manager."

The goalkeeper's radiant expression dropped and morphed into a looking like a lost puppy. "A manager? You don't want to play soccer?" Unmei looked to his right again to see Haruna with the same expression as the goalkeeper, the red-framed glasses that sat on her head fell on her face. 

Unmei nodded with a soft smile on his face. "Although I can't bring myself to play it anymore, your guys' passion really drew me back to it." Gouenji and the goggle-wearing student shared a look, but both silently agreed that that was a story for another time. A smile grew back on Endou's face, giving Unmei's hand a firm shake and a nod. "Welcome to the soccer club!" Endou chirped.

**Author's Note:**

> if you don't know who Unmei Sasanami is, he's the protagonist for the upcoming Inazuma game, Inazuma Eleven: Great Road of Heroes! here's an article regarding the matter: https://www.siliconera.com/inazuma-eleven-great-road-of-heroess-protagonist-is-a-manager/
> 
> huge thanks to:@HetaGist_123 for proofreading!!


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